“My job's mainly intel, so the more places I go, the better I'm doing it.”
Deacon is a Railroad agent living in the Commonwealth in 2287, and a potential companion of the Sole Survivor.
Background
Deacon is a spy for the elusive synth liberation organization, the Railroad. Little is known about his past prior to joining the Railroad, as he readily admits to lying about his own history. Among other things, he claims that he was among the first liberated Gen-3's, that he helped found the Railroad in the 2210s, and that he is the true leader of the organization with Desdemona serving as a figurehead.[1]
Early life
The most detailed account that he provides holds that as a youth he was a member of the University Point Deathclaws, a gang which harassed accused synths. Their antagonism escalated to the lynching of a man suspected of being a Gen-3. Shaken by his part in the murder, Deacon left the gang to settle down as a farmer. Some time later he married a woman named Barbara. They intended to start a family, but the Deathclaws reemerged and attacked the farm. The gang had learned - to both Deacon's and Barbara's surprise - that Barbara was a synth.
Enraged by her execution, Deacon butchered the Deathclaws in a bloodthirsty haze. In the aftermath of the slaughter, he was contacted by the Railroad, who were evidently unaware of his prior affiliation with the UP Deathclaws. Despite believing himself undeserving, Deacon swore himself to their cause. As with most of his stories, there is no evidence to prove or disprove this claim.
Working for the Railroad
Sometime during or prior to December of 2273, he took the name "Deacon" and survived yet another Institute raid on the Railroad, with Pinky Thompson attributing the organization's survival to his escape plan. When Pinky stepped down in 2277, he aided Doctor Carrington and Desdemona in revising the organization's policies to put a focus on operational security.
By 2287, Deacon had became one of Desdemona's top men, carrying out important missions and escorting synths of high value to the Railroad. He had been assigned to work undercover, tracking persons of interest. At some point following the Sole Survivor's awakening, Deacon took an interest in the traveler, shadowing them throughout the Commonwealth and gathering information on their activities in the hopes of recruiting them for the Railroad.
Interactions with the player character
Interactions overview
| Interactions | ||
|---|---|---|
  |
This character is essential. Essential characters cannot be killed. | |
  |
This character is a permanent companion. They grant the * Cloak & Dagger perk. | |
  |
This character is a temporary companion. | |
  |
This character starts quests. | |
  |
This character is involved in quests. | |
  |
This character is a doctor. |
|
  |
This character is a merchant. |  -Sells: - |
  |
This character can repair items. | Max Repair condition: - |
  |
This character can modify weapons. |
- |
  |
This character rents beds. | -.
|
Quests
- Tradecraft: Deacon accompanies the Sole Survivor to the Railroad's previous headquarters to retrieve a lost prototype.
- Precipice of War: The Sole Survivor and Deacon escort Tinker Tom to Cambridge Police Station to steal a Brotherhood vertibird.
- Rockets' Red Glare: Using the stolen vertibird, the Sole Survivor and Deacon infiltrate and sabotage The Prydwen.
- The Nuclear Option: Deacon and the other members of the Railroad assault the Institute, freeing the synths within before blowing up the facility's nuclear reactor.
- Tactical Thinking, End of the Line: The Survivor is dispatched to kill the Railroad's leaders, including Deacon.
Effects of player's actions
- When the Sole Survivor first approaches the group, Deacon vouches for the Survivor's character to Desdemona, citing their accomplishments and potential. Should the Sole Survivor agree to join up, Deacon will offer his services as a companion.
- At maximum approval Deacon awards the Cloak & Dagger perk, which gives +40% duration for Stealth Boys and +20% damage from sneak attacks.
- Deacon will become instantly hostile if the player character kills a settler or anyone involved in the Railroad.
- Siding with the Brotherhood of Steel or the Institute in the endgame sequence will flag the player character an enemy of the Railroad, resulting in the loss of Deacon as a companion and turning him hostile.
- After siding with the Minutemen and finishing the end game sequence without completing the optional quest, the Railroad and Deacon will turn hostile when the player character next speaks to Desdemona. You may still speak to other Railroad characters and complete quests for them.
Range of interests
| Approvals | Disapprovals |
|---|---|
|
|
Inventory
| Apparel | Weapon | Other items |
|---|---|---|
| Undershirt & jeans or Sunglasses or Laundered loungewear or Pompadour wig or Flannel shirt and jeans or Road leathers or Padded blue jacket or Farmhand clothes or Athletic outfit or DC guard umpire's pads or Black vest and slacks or Utility coveralls or Lab coat or Newsboy cap or Battered fedora or Weathered outfit |
Sniper rifle Pipe gun (While working undercover, before finding the Railroad) |
Stimpak |
Notes
- "Deacon" is a confirmed alias. His true name is never revealed.
- When passing the persuasion test for Deacon, it reveals that all the things he said (being a synth, being the leader of the Railroad, etc.) are all lies.
- Prior to contacting the Railroad, the Sole Survivor may come across Deacon working incognito in some major settlements. Deacon will alter his appearance while following the player character around the Commonwealth. The only constant in his disguises is the sunglasses which he never removes. He has some fixed disguises for certain places (like DC guard armor in Diamond City or a vault suit in vaults).
- He is present for the argument between Piper and Mayor McDonough, disguised as Diamond City Security.
- He can be found wandering around Goodneighbor disguised as a "drifter" and later joining in Hancock's speech about the Institute. He can also be found in one of the pods in Memory Den.
- He may be spotted in Bunker Hill disguised as a "caravan worker."
- There's a chance for one of Deacon's disguises to be just him wearing nothing but a left leather leg piece.
- Deacon is marked as Essential in all of the above disguises. If cheats or mods are used to kill him in any of the disguises before one reaches the Railroad, Deacon will be alive during Road to Freedom and will act as if nothing happened. This is because all of the disguises are technically considered separate characters by the game.
- He will not say anything if taken to Nate/Nora's corpse in Vault 111.
- Deacon is a companion that can't be romanced by the Sole Survivor.
- His natural hair color is ginger. This can be found by using the modify looks command.
- He will use the Sole Survivor's past actions to introduce them to Desdemona, such as taking out Sinjin, being a member of the Brotherhood and being the general of the Minutemen, among others.
- Deacon claims to have visited the Capital Wasteland. He mentions how the Brotherhood of Steel "wasn't so bad" prior to Maxson's ascension to elder, as well as how the water there is drinkable[2] (referencing Project Purity from Fallout 3).
- Deacon's dialogue contains nods to previous Fallout games. These include suggesting "Code Violet" as a team name (which is part of Harkness' override code in Fallout 3), attempting to use what he says is Robert House's personal override codes on Deezer (which he claims to have won in a poker game), joking about wanting to convince a new recruit he is actually John Henry Eden, and 'guessing' where enemy snipers could be, which is akin to Craig Boone's comments on the quest You'll Know It When It Happens.
- Deacon appears to have acrophobia (afraid of heights), as he makes negative comments when boarding a Vertibird (such as flying in a 200-year-old vehicle, or preferring "good old terra firma"), wants to get down from Trinity Tower as fast as possible, etc.
- At one point in 2275, Deacon was kicked out of HQ by former leader Pinky Thompson because he was "sick of the lying, face-changing son of a bitch," and because Deacon had spent a month as a ghoul, which "freaked a lot of people out."
Notable quotes
- "The big three for predicting people: caps, beliefs, and ego. Get a handle on what's driving someone and you know where you stand."
- "I really want to know how the Big One started. What idiot fired first? Why? What the hell did they think they'd gain?"
- "I never really much cared for the Minutemen. The idea sounds great. But you give small men big power and sometimes you'll pay for it."
- "One time, I got a face change and was a girl for a few months. You should've seen the looks back at HQ."
- "Insert something Shakespearean involving death and your inevitable doom here."
- "Fighting is so 2077."
- "Alright. You got me up here... let's go down. Now?" – After reaching the top of Trinity Tower.
- "We got to get to that crash site, even if it means Tinker gets to say "I told you so!"." – When seeing the Alien ship crash land.
- "Your wish is my.... strong recommendation".
- "Got the hang of the Railroad yet? We're just one big dysfunctional family... with guns!".
- "If I were a sniper I'd be there, or there, or there. Isn't this fun?" – When out in the open in enemy territory.
- "Usually it's spa days and macramé, but hey, I'm up for some mayhem." – During Memory Interrupted when Glory asks what he does.
- "Since we're a team, you think we should use a code name? Red Orchard? Or... Code Violet? Or... the Death Bunnies. That'll confuse them."
- "But I had a point here. A lesson, if you will. There're other organizations out there. And, in time, I'm sure they're going to spoon-feed you their own patented form of bullshit. Ignore the verbage
and look at what they're doing. What they're asking you to do. What sort of world they'd have you build and how they're going to pay for it." - "I'm a fan of the Barbarian Grognak myself. What will that wacky barbarian do next?." – When picking up a magazine
- "We're great. We're fricking fantastic. Songs will be written about our sheer awesome-osity." – At maximum affinity
- "Here I was wanting to spend the day reading Proust, then you had to go and ruin it!" – Upon entering combat
- "This will be our finest hour. Tales shall be told of our fight versus the rad roaches."
- "Would you look at that? Damn." – Upon witnessing the Brotherhood of Steel's arrival in the Commonwealth.
- "Back in Capital Wasteland the Brotherhood was a force to be reckoned with. But them plus that giant airship..." – On the Brotherhood of Steel's combat capability.
Appearances
Deacon appears only in Fallout 4.
Behind the scenes
- Ryan Alosio, Deacon's voice actor, has expressed interest in reprising his role as Deacon in future installments. Not only this, but Alosio often posts content related to Deacon often on his social media, showing a very personal love for the character.[3]
- A deacon is a low-ranking ministerial position in many Christian churches. Their duties often include, but are not limited to: day-to-day clerical work, charitable works and recruitment and education of new church members.
Bugs
- Deacon will be stuck in walk mode after completing The Nuclear Option (Minutemen), resulting in him often falling behind when exploring. [verified]
- It can happen before completing the quest, seemingly at random.
- Possible fix for PC is to use the console command setstage comdeacon 1000.
- Another possible fix (only tested on PS4) is to draw your weapon to cause him to draw his and start running.
- During Rockets' Red Glare Deacon can get stuck lying face down on the ground after exiting the Vertibird. This can be fixed by dismissing Deacon. He will revert to normal when you find him in whichever settlement you sent him to. [verified]
- When in power armor, Deacon's outfit changes affect the armor too, and he will unequip whatever armor pieces are equipped. [verified]
- Additionally, Deacon will unequip all armor pieces at the destination of your fast travel causing you to take him out of the armor, reattach all armor pieces and put him back into it. Deacon may lose the power armor, including the frame, during these changes. This can be seen sometimes in Diamond City when he changes into a Diamond City security outfit.
- Deacon can't be told to exit the power armor because he only talks about his recall code. To fix this read the recall code, and then start the dialog and tell him the code. After this it will be possible to make him exit the power armor the usual way. [verified]
- Sometimes when giving Deacon an outfit to wear, he will stay in that outfit even when trying to switch to a different outfit. The different outfit will change his body shape, but he will still be wearing the original outfit. [verified]
- A rare glitch may occur where Deacon will keep his rifle out, except the trigger will be floating above his hand; he will not move and keep aiming with his rifle while remaining on the spot. [verified]
- He can disappear when Father asks for the Railroad to be eliminated. He won't be in the Railroad HQ until the character sides with the Railroad or starts killing them. Once a side is chosen, the message "Deacon tolerates you" will appear and he talk to you about how you're acting crazy. [verified]
- The only way to fix this is to fire him and come back for him later.
- When exploring, Deacon's outfit may begin to change rapidly. If you try to speak to any companion after that it will not work. [verified]
- When Deacon is in power armor he may randomly unequip his armor pieces. This could be a glitch from when he changes identities. [verified]
Gallery
Deacon disguised as DC Security at Diamond City
Deacon working undercover as a Drifter at Goodneighbor
Deacon masquerading as a Caravan Worker at Bunker Hill
Deacon without his sunglasses
Deacon's icon from the Cloak & Dagger perk
References
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||